“Funny Girl” ( Milwaukee)

*****  Last night, we drove to Milwaukee to see “Funny Girl”. It was a rough drive in a sort of sleet and the highway was filled with trucks heading to their destinations. While we did not get the anticipated snowstorm that would paralyze the city, it was still a “white knuckle” journey. My thoughts were “was it worth it”?

The truth of the matter is, YES!!! The production of “Funny Girl” the biography of Fannie Brice ( I must tell you that Katerina McCrimmon was amazing and up to the task of the role that made Barbra Streisand “the greatest”) who became a star during the 1930’s. With a book by Isobel Lennart with revisions by Harvey Fierstein, music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Bob Merrill, this is the amazing story of the “ugly duckling turning into a swan”( show-biz style).

The story is about this very talented young lady, who wants to be a performer but lacks the beauty that the burlesque houses feel is needed. Her friend Eddie(Izaiah Montaque Harris, who is quite the tap dancer) gets her into the show and she opts to be funny in order to break the tension, bringing cheers from the audience and a job for her. She is also aided by Nick Arnstein ( deftly handled by  Stephen Mark Lukas), a gambler and con-man who she will marry and with whom she will have a child .

As I looked around the beautiful  Uihlein Hall in the Marcus Center, I thought that most of these people will not even know the name Fannie Brice except those who have seen a production  , or the movie version, of “Funny Girl”. She was an amazing talent who could belt out with the best and create a comedic tone. There are many that say that Streisand was born to create the role as it catapulted her to stardom, but watching ( and listening to) Ms McCrimmon, I think another talent has been found.

The music is both memorable (songs like “People”, “Don’t Rain on My Parade” and “Who Are You Now”) and helps in telling the story (“If A Girl Isn’t Pretty”, “”Who Taught Her Everything She Knows”) and the characters are very real. I loved Mother (Barbara Tirrel is a powerhuse) and her cohorts, Mrs. Stakosh (Eileen T’Kaye) and  Mrs Meeker ( Chicago favorite Christine Bunuan). The three of them were adorable.

Let me talk about the amazing Uihlein Hall located at 929 North Water Street in downtown Milwaukee. It is one of the most comfortable theaters I have ever sat in. Plenty of leg room ( Frank was able to cross his legs for the whole show), cup holder and great sight lines. They have a dining lobby where one can purchase ( and eat) a sandwich or a mac’n’cheese dish ( after all we were in Milwaukee) and even pretzel bits along with great cocktails. They have a parking garage directly across the street that has a skywalk so you never even walk outside.

Milwaukee is only a hop, skip and jump from the North Shore ( 64 minutes from Lake Cook and the Toll road to the garage) and this production is worth the drive. The show will only be here ( or since it is over the state line, there) until the 14th (Sunday) with performances as follows:

tonight  7:30 p.m.

Thursday  7:30 p.m.

Friday   7:30 p.m.

Saturday  2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Sunday  1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m

Tickets range from $40 and you can prepay parking at about $15

To get tickets visit  www.MarcusCenter.org 

You can also call 414-273-7206.

They have a full season of Broadway shows for Broadway Lovers! It was worth the trip!